Reuben Bakker, Boulder plane crash survivors on the Today Show: Tough luck, Westboro Baptist Church

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy Survivors of terrible accidents are often sought-after guests for network news shows -- especially when there's footage of the catastrophe they narrowly avoided. It's no surprise, then, that Reuben Bakker, the pilot of a glider that managed to...

By Michael Roberts

February 9, 2010

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Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Survivors of terrible accidents are often sought-after guests for network news shows -- especially when there's footage of the catastrophe they narrowly avoided. It's no surprise, then, that Reuben Bakker, the pilot of a glider that managed to fly through the wreckage of two planes destroyed during a mid-air collision in Boulder over the weekend, as well as Brandi Hepburn and her son, Bakker's passengers, were guests of honor on this morning's episode of the Today Show.

As you can see in the clip above, Bakker, wearing a boldly colored shirt that looked oddly like a different kind of explosion, calmly explained his heroic actions as video of the crash that took three lives looped in the background. The three are lucky to be alive -- and fortunate not to have their funerals targeted by Kansas's Westboro Baptist Church simply for having perished near the godless town of Boulder.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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